Jeff Landry remains the leading Republican in this year’s Louisiana governor’s race, according to recent polling, even after the airing of a dark-money television ad that accused Landry of having a personal connection with a wealthy donor found with child pornography.
The ad, which was funded by a group called Louisiana Leadership Fund LLC, was the object of a restraining order signed by a Louisiana district judge on Sept. 11. The order released by the 22nd Judicial District court said evidence presented by the Landry campaign’s attorneys showed there was good cause to conclude that a false statement was made against the candidate.
“This advertisement was a blatant lie against Jeff Landry, and it was rightfully taken down,” Kate Kelly, spokeswoman for the Landry campaign, said in a prepared statement. “The (Stephen) Waguespack campaign is using dark money to hide from voters. This was a desperate attempt by Waguespack to manipulate voters, and it is shameful.”
The Waguespack campaign did not respond to several requests for comment, but Robert Collins, a professor of urban studies and public policy at Dillard University, said there is no evidence directly tying the ad to the Waguespack campaign.
A new survey by Mason-Dixon Polling and Strategy found that Landry remains the GOP frontrunner, garnering 40% support among poll respondents to Democrat Shawn Wilson’s 24%. Meanwhile, the remaining GOP candidates were all in single digits, with Waguespack, the former CEO of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, posting 9% and the remaining candidates under 5%.
All candidates in the Oct. 14 governor’s race, regardless of party affiliation, run together in a “jungle” primary election. If no candidate garners more than 50% of the vote, the two top vote-getters run head-to-head in the general election.
Neither the controversy over the TV ad or the revelation that Landry has received at least $700,000 in contributions from trial lawyers has made a dent in Landry’s dominance among GOP candidates in the race, Collins said.
“I expected a lot of dark money to be spent, but as of yet I don’t think enough dark money has been spent to change the outcome of the race,” he told the Louisiana Record.
A few of the GOP candidates have criticized Landry over his trial attorney donations and what that might mean for the passage of future tort reforms, but attacks related to the state’s legal climate have yet to change the overall dynamics of the race, according to Collins.
“It could be an issue, but the Republican candidates would have to hit him (Landry) a whole lot harder on it than they’re hitting him now,” he said.
In addition, polling has shown in hypothetical one-on-one general election match-ups, Wilson fares better against Landry than any of the other GOP candidates, demonstrating the weakness of the Republican field, according to Collins.